


Useful Magicks

by claudine



Series: claudine's summerpornathon 2013 [7]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Era, First Time, Fluff, Future Fic, M/M, Magic, Magic Revealed, Summer Pornathon 2013
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-22
Updated: 2013-09-22
Packaged: 2017-12-27 07:55:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/976328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/claudine/pseuds/claudine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur puts Merlin to work. Merlin tries his best, but it's not going very well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Useful Magicks

**Author's Note:**

> Challenge Seven: [Magic](http://summerpornathon.livejournal.com/96389.html)  
> Entry #7

Merlin refers to the outing of his magic to Arthur as _The Incident_. Everything else is pre-Incident and post-Incident.

He’s beginning to regret his decision.

***

“I swear Merlin, even with your magic you’re an incompetent _idiot_ ,” Arthur said, coughing and batting away the purple smoke wafting out from the cauldron of goop in the workroom.

“I’m an elemental! I never learned any spells until I came to Camelot!” Merlin protested, his voice starting to take on a whine but he'd be buggered if any non-magical person—King or not—was going to call him bad at his one talent.

There then, the spell Merlin had been making to water-proof the Knights’ cloaks during long, rainy hunts was a failure. He sat down on an upturned bucket, disheartened, and waved at the apparatus with a careless gesture. The cauldron lifted itself to the sink and emptied the purple goop into the gutter with a smooth motion, causing Arthur to jump a little.

“How is it that you can command _pots_ to do your bidding, but a simple water-repelling spell baffles you?”

“I told you,” Merlin said glumly, “I’m a natural. Apparently that means I’m rather bad at _creating_ spells.”

“Well, we can’t have our Court Sorcerer not knowing how to do such basic magic. So you’ll just have to practise, Merlin.”

He sighed, frustrated.

“I think I preferred it when you didn’t know anything.”

 

***

After that, there were attempts to keep pests away from crops; to aid in a mare’s birthing; and even once, memorably, to expand Cook’s fruit pies to twice their original size. They were strangely _useful_ spells that Arthur had requested. Especially the last one that Merlin had dubbed the ‘Embiggen’ spell. That had been delicious. (It’d worked—Merlin’s hungry stomach probably played a part.)

“Three weeks and you’ve made me practice all these spells,” Merlin mused, taking a sip of his wine. He felt relaxed in the quiet of the evening, sitting at Arthur’s table and sharing supper. When the mantle of magic and kingship and friendly bickering were thrown off, when they were just men—comrades, and friends.

“Yes, Merlin,” Arthur said with a tilt of his head, indicating that Merlin should continue.

He was strangely beautiful, the dim lights in the room casting shadows on his face, beneath the strong jut of his jaw. His skin looked soft, freshly washed from his bath.

“You’re looking to normalize magic,” Merlin said, glancing away, “Use it to help people, like a tool. Like how a knight uses his sword.”

“Yes.”

“That’s—clever. I’m not sure I could be your Court Sorcerer though,” Merlin said wistfully, “I’d much rather remain your manservant, use my magic to skive off from chores.”

Arthur laughed, surprised, and said, “You would.” It sounded fond.

And his face was suddenly so close. His breath hot, and his fingers—

“This is a kind of magic too,” Arthur said, then bent over to kiss him. Just a dry press of lips, and then pulling back. His smile wavered as Merlin remained stiff, shocked.

Merlin’s brain caught up in a rush, his arms flailing as he hugged Arthur to stop him from moving away.

“No, yes—stay.”

He let go of Arthur, then bent his head to kiss him again. Merlin was nervous and it wasn’t perfect, but they adjusted their mouths, and it got better. A warm, wet exchange of breaths and moisture that was making his blood hum gradually, and a tight, sweet ache in his chest.

They broke apart and made their way over, shedding tunics at the foot of the bed. Merlin’s fingers were clumsy on the laces of his breeches and, frustrated, simply magicked them loose.

“This is a useful magic,” Arthur said in a stage whisper, and Merlin stopped to laugh, batting Arthur’s hands away as he helped him unlace his breeches too.

It was better like this, skin to skin, and it was warm, sticky in the summer heat. It was too hot for anything else but a slow rub against each other, and questing fingers over bared skin.

Being together with Arthur like this, Merlin felt grounded. He came with a shudder, silent through his climax.


End file.
